Its minister, Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin, said business operators have been given a one-month period to label all paint brushes made with pig bristles (as non-halal).

He said since March 9, inspection has been carried out to detect whether traders are complying with the rules and regulations governing the labelling of paint brushes made with pig bristles.

“If traders are operating in accordance with the regulations, the ministry will return their confiscated paint brushes. If they are defiant, we will take action according to the existing law,” Hamzah told the Dewan Rakyat today.

The BN-Larut member of Parliament was answering a question from Hee Loy Sian (PKR-Petaling Jaya Selatan) on whether the ministry would return pig bristle paint brushes confiscated during Operasi Berus to hardware traders.

“The ministry will not return them to traders if they fail to label all brushes made from the hair of dogs and bristles of pigs (as such).

“All we want is for all traders to make clear labelling, such as ‘these items are made of pig bristles / made with dog’s hair’, and put it on display,” he said.

Hamzah said traders of animal-hair products should be more ethical and responsible in informing consumers about the existence of such products, especially those made from any parts of dogs or pigs, which are considered unclean in Islam.

Operasi Berus was ended on Feb 9 and the ministry has since given business operators one month to label and segregate items with pig’s elements.

The one-month notice ended on March 9 and the ministry has started its operation to examine whether businesses have labelled and segregated pig bristle brushes.